Snub Nosed and Maude
by TheLionTree
Summary: Silus is sitting in jail after a beating from the wasteland wanderer. Boyd is still bugging him, but the cleaning woman shows him some mercy when she slides him some food. Will he get out of this place? Rated M for language and future adult themes.
1. 01 Silus the Snarky

Silus awoke after several hours to the sound of a woman cleaning the cells. He looked at her through groggy eyes and was a little hypnotized by the repetitive motions of her mopping the floor. His mouth tasted like crap, and his body hurt from the beating he received yesterday. The woman looked over and eyed him curiously, her green eyes catching the light for a second. She then turned and stood back, as two NCR officers walked through the wet floor making a mess of it. Silus scowled a little bit as he realized it was Lt. Boyd with one of her male lackeys.

LT. Boyd looked in at Silus with her standard blank expression. Some days he thought he'd give everything he ever owned just to make her show some emotion. She lit a cigarette, reached behind her, took a food plate from the private, and set it down more than an arm's reach from Silus's cage. Silus then grumbled and said "Playing this game again...Between having an outsider beat me senseless and refusing me food, I think your NCR would be rather ashamed of you."

"What's the problem Silus?" Lt Boyd said with a casual tone, "Not hungry again? I keep leaving your food right outside of the cell. This hunger strike really has to stop, it causes me extra paperwork."

Silus then groaned and rolled forward on the bed slowly. "Of course I am hungry, you parasite. You seem to think leaving the food with in my reach is acceptable. Trust me, when Caesar over takes this place I'll return the favor. I have a marvelous plan for when you come up for purchase. See I will purchase you and leave you in a small cage to starve to death."

Lt. Boyd then rolled her eyes and began to walk off, remarking to the private "We'll give him 20 minutes to eat his food, and if he doesn't touch it this time...well…little we can do. Silus must miss his boyfriends in the Legion so much he just can't bring himself to enjoy the food we provide."

Silus looked over at the plate, and debated reaching for it. It would no doubt be as fruitless as trying to reach the plate was the last two days. So long without food had made him start to feel pretty desperate. Hunger was eating his guts up more than any abuse ever would, and he wondered if he'd make it much longer if he didn't eat something soon. He then turned and was once again absorbed into watching the repetitive movement of the woman mopping up.

The cleaning woman sighed then pulled the bucket close and looked over at Silus. She locked eyes with the legionary, and they seemed to exchange some kind of understanding. She then took a few steps across the wet floor, and slid the plate over to the edge of his cage with her foot.. Silus then looked over at the janitor, and realized she didn't wear the uniform of a NCR solider.  
"I suppose if I lean down and reach for that, you're going to kick it away at the last minute, because of some chip on your shoulder against the Legion...So I'm not even going to bother."

Then woman then smiled at him and said "Or I'll just smile to myself, slide you the plate, and be satisfied you got a meal in revenge for them walking across my wet floor."

The woman then bent over, and used the tips of her fingers to slide the plate to him. He looked at her a long moment, surprised anyone this side of the Colorado would show him any kindness.

Silus quickly moved forward and pulled the plate up through the slot in the bars, and began eating with great zest. It was prepackaged, poorly cooked military food, but he had spent just enough time hungry that eatable meant way more than taste at that moment. He then watched the woman fish up moping over the footsteps of the soldiers. She then turned and opened the cell next to him and started to clean inside of it.

"You know, if an NCR pig such as yourself saw fit to let me out of this cage, the favor could be returned when Legion finally over takes this profligate trash."

The woman then stepped out of the cell, still holding a rag in her hands, and cocked her head to the side and looked at the man. Silus straightened himself at the front of the cell and looked down at the small dark haired woman in front of him. She then pushed her lips together and said "NCR pig? You sure know how to win a lady over with compliments...You'd be more accurate to state: Crimson Caravan Bitch. Next you'll be telling me how little I smell compared to Lt Boyd...well with such accolades, how could I resist ignoring your request"

Silus sneered as she returned to cleaning, still uncomfortable with the way women in Profligate lands addressed men. He then huffed and returned to his cart, tossing the plate out carelessly. "So the NCR is pulled so tight, while fighting Legion they are hiring people out of the Crimson Caravan to clean up. This news pleases me, dissolute girl."

He then heard laughter from the cell next to him echoing out into the room, and she remarked "Well, I guess you're not stupid, just an asshole. Seems suiting for what I've heard of Legion soldiers. Now if you'll excuse me, I have other floors to mop, and spending time with you won't get me any closer to my nightly ritual of knitting before bed."

He watched her leave, his golden brown eyes noticing the curves of the woman as she walked past with her supplies. He then sat back down slowly on his bunk and looked out of his cell at the wall across from him. He remained like this for several minuets until Lt. Boyd returned and picked up the empty dish in front of his cell. "Well look at that Silus, I guess you were hungry after all. I wonder how you reached that far? Hunger must really motivated you. Maybe the warm glow of a full stomach will motivate you to tell me something I want to hear."

Silus scoffed at Lt. Boyd and then sneered at her "It's only a matter of time till Cesar finds out where I am, and sends an assassin to end my miserable life. Your constant harassment will do nothing to hold back the wrath of Cesar. All your rude mouth is going to earn from me is a smile as I muse about how the future only holds death or enslavement for you."

"That again Silus? I swear half of our conversations end with you threatening me. It's like you don't care anymore Silus. Well I guess that's fine, after all I'm not really sure I care about a Legionary who doesn't even have the courage to kill himself."

Silus then snarled and moved towards the bars of the cage like a pinned tiger. His eyes narrowed into slits when another private came in and command him to prepare to move cells so that his could be cleaned. Under the watchful eye of Lt. Boyd he was hand cuffed through the bars and moved into cell next, which smelled vaguely of bleach. Boyd then walked over to the newly locked bars and smiled in at him and said "Enjoy your time off Silus, I'll be back tomorrow, and my friend will probably join me. I mean we wouldn't want you to feel to lonely for your new conversational companion."

"Keep him away from me!" Silus barked at Lt. Boyd's back as she walked out of the room.


	2. 02 Making Friends, Was That Hard?

The janitor woman with the dark hair then came back in with her mop and bucket. She moved in to his old cell slowly and began to clean. Silus leaned back, feeling cocky from winning out over Boyd and having breakfast. He then chided the cleaning woman "You know, if you let me go, I could see to it you're not sold as a slave to someone who will beat you to regularly. Obviously you know how to clean, so you're half way to pleasing someone in your new life of servitude."

Silus listened closely as the woman sloshed water around in his cell for the next few minutes. Her lack of a response began to annoy him more than Lt. Boyd's constant sarcasm. He then said clearly, "You know it's polite to speak when spoken to, girl."

The woman then pushed her bucket out of the cell and finished mopping the rest of the floor. She whiped some sweat from her head and stepped back to look at Silus in the prison. She seemed to be studying him, and he responded with normal sullen expression, his face hawkish and gaunt.

"You know...slavery can take many forms," she stated tiredly "one could say, meet a nice fellow with a life long contract with a caravan company...Marry him, lose him, then get stuck paying off his debts. Indentured servitude for what will probably be the rest of her life, because she married poorly. She won't see a future for herself, or have enough time to drink, date, or do anything but knit socks to sell for extra food money. All she will see in front of her is slavery at the hands of strangers, or contractual slavery at the hands of people that are supposed to be the hero's in this story."

Silus looked at her blankly for a few seconds, rarely having ever heard a woman so easily accept her fate. He thought then how lovely she'd look in a slave collar cleaning his floor,and glared at her with a smug intensity. "So I suppose this is the part where you tell me how the Legion is responsible for your husband's death."

The woman then rolled her eyes and started shoving her bucket towards the door "If your Legion is now recruiting death claws, then yes. It's all your fault."

Silus snickered and said "Well, you could always end up as a free woman with us...Of course. With the right motivation for an honest Soldier to make you one."

Then woman the paused and turned around, still holding on to her mop. She seemed to be looking through him, considering something. Slowly she drug the bucket towards him and began to mop the floor to look busy and said "Lets say I'm willing to listen to your crazy proposals...because lets say a big conference some of the Brass down stairs is having is slowing up my cleaning schedule...What do you have to offer me?"

He watched the woman with the green eyes and dark hair, looking for some sign she was a plant from Boyd sent to make him crack. She looked confident, but lacked the somber authority that most soldiers possessed.

He then said to her with a touch of sympathy in his voice "We're both in loosing situations here. I'm stuck in here because I didn't kill myself like a good Legionary would, and you're stuck under a horrible contract. Now I can go back to Cesar, but I will have to have something that will justify my decision to live.  
Lets say if you could get me a uniform, a cell key, a gun, and some information that would give me a bargaining chip...I could make sure that when Legion takes McCarran you're in a good position to no longer be a slave."

The woman then laughed like he'd just told her an awkward joke. She then pushed her hair out of her face with her rough hands, and looked over at him. "Lets say I could...Lets say I came in here with a hidden gun, a uniform under my clothes, and some military plans I lift from Hsu's desk...Lets say I get to close to the cage and you knock me out, and leave me on the floor helpless, taking my universal janitor's key int he process...could you really promise me that when McCarrin is taken, I won't be raped, beaten, and used as a slave?"

Silus blinked at her a little surprised she gave up that easy, but from what she had told him she had been on the loosing end of the NCR bureaucratic system for awhile now. He then leaned in and whispered to her, "I can see to it that special arrangements are made, concerning...Well what IS your name?"

She then leaned in closer to him, and whispered in a sweet timber, "Maude."

"I could see to it, Maude, that for doing a Centurion such a favor, that you are spared the destruction that will befall the other dissolute when the time comes."

Maude then nodded and moved back, pretending to spot mop a little bit. As she made her way out she said, just audible to him, "I guess tomorrow morning will be interesting then."

She then picked up her bucket and turned the corner, and as she did she met eyes with an annoyed looking Lt. Boyd. The look in the Lieutenant's eyes made her stand still in fear, and she waited quite a few seconds, waiting for a sign that Boyd had heard something damning.

Boyd then said with a cruel tone "What's the legionary want from you little mop girl? Is he offering you sugar and slave collars? Or making promises he surely can't keep?"

Maude then looked at her feet and feigned embarrassment. She coughed a second to delay responding to the Lieutenant and then looked up and shot a wicked smile at her "Well...if you consider not having me killed when Legion wins, in exchange for a blow job, then yeah...guess he is making me promises he probably won't keep."

The Lieutenant then laughed and drew from her ever present cigarette, making Maude wonder if she ever stopped smoking. Boyd then moved very close to Maude and said to her with a low chesty rumble "You know, if he likes you,and you could get him to talk...well, I'm not making any promises, but I'm sure some years could get shaved off of any contract you have."

A green eye moved up and lifted a brow into a curious look "Well, how many years do you think that would be worth then?"

"Oh, I dunno, four, maybe five years. It could be a good deal to one of you Crimson Caravan types."

Maude felt her expression sink a little, she looked down at the mop water and started to push the bucket down the hall. Four or Five years on a life time contract was like offering to drain a damn by drinking a few hand fulls.

"Well Boyd, maybe you should offer him that blow job, cause let me tell you...It seems the only thing he has to offer me is bad breath and wasted time.."


	3. 03 Only the Pain Remains

Maude looked up at the light shining over the table and winced. Her bruised right eye narrowed and for all purposes closed while the left remained slightly open.  
"So...Care to tell us exactly how you got that shiner again?" Lt. Boyd said flatly, "not that I expect your story to change much. The truth is a lot to ask from a Legion conspirator."  
"I was cleaning the cell area. That Legionary started harassing me again. I stepped to close, he grabbed me, slammed my head into the wall, and I guess he pulled my key off my belt and made himself free."  
Boyd then parted her hands and move the fingers apart slowly, like a bird opening it's feathers. "Free'd himself? hmmm. You have to understand my hesitance to think you'd be so careless around someone as dangerous as a Legion Centurion. Maybe you liked what he had to offer. Not telling us what really happened is in your best interest. After all, some of Colonel Hsu's files are missing. Don't you think that's interesting to happen the same day Silus makes himself a 'free man'?"  
Maude closed both of her eyes, feeling the stiff ache of the hurt eye and meekly replied "Hsu is bad at file keeping? Isn't there a solider you can scold for this...I've got cells to clean."  
Maude stood slowly, the chair shrieking behind her. Boyd then reached over the table and put a hand on Maude's shoulder and guided her back down into her seat. "If you don't mind, I am not finished with our friendly little chat. You know the chat we've been having about my old pal Silus. I do miss him so, and am eager to find out why you let him go home early."  
Maude felt trapped, scared, like Boyd could see through her and know that over the past few days she smuggled clothes from the laundry into Silus's cell and armed him just well enough to stage his escape. She folded her hands on the table and looked down at them sadly. Was she some kind of idiot to think she could fool NCR soldiers trained to look through this kind of deception? She knew she's break...It was just a matter of Boyd figuring out how to make her.  
"Nothing to say?" Boyd retorted with a smug sense of self satisfaction. "That's fine. You know... I think I know why you did it. You've got a crush. That's why you made that crude comment in the hallway the other day. That's why you talked to Legion scum int he first place. Do you get off on flirting with men that want to keep you collared and tied up like an obedient dog?"  
Maude felt anger rise into her gut, and she spit back at Boyd with a rage, "NCR dog, Legion dog, Crimson Caravan bitch! What does it matter! In the end I'm still scrubbing someones floors for the rest of my life!"  
Boyd grinned a little bit, lit a new cigarette, cocked her head back, and blew smoke towards Maude's eyes. "So I take that as an admission of guilt. You figured you'd rather be Caesar's whore."  
"No! No! He grabbed my arm and slammed my head into the wall...I had no choice..."  
Boyd then nodded and stood, moving towards the door. "A traitor to the NCR is a traitor to the NCR. The sooner you admit your roll, the better. I figured you'd be a though nut to crack. I bet Hsu is right and you're the spy we've had in our midst the entire time. Sense you're as unwilling to talk as Silus is, I'll let my friend who's standing outside take up the same interrogation tactics with you."  
Maude watched as Boyd finally walked all the way out of the room, and a tall fair haired man in leather studded armor stepped inside. He didn't ask any questions at first, he just grabbed Maude by the neck and slammed her into the wall. After several minutes of him demanding information and using Maude as a punching bag the door opened and another man stepped in. The fair haired man let Maude fall to the floor, where she ran her arm across her nose and drew a line of thick red blood across her arm.  
As the man stepped closer Maude recognised him as Curtis, the Captain under Hsu. "Who authorized non-military interrogation of an NCR citizen?"  
Curtis looked around the room, his cruel brown eyes carving into the people in the room. "Boyd? Do you have an explanation for this woman receiving a beating today, on top of the one she had at the hands of that Legion dog yesterday?"  
Boyd then stepped into the room, her usually cockiness giving way just enough to not seem insubordinate. "Colonel Hsu was concerned she was the spy that my friend here has been looking for. I decided that intense interrogation tactics were necessary to try to extract the truth of this situation, sir."  
Curtis looked at Boyd with a long scolding look. He then dismissed Boyd, ordered her friend to be escorted off base, and turned to Maude once the door closed and they were alone. "Do you think you can stand?"  
Maude flinched, moved back from his hand, and looked up at him with purple watery eyes. "He...He...He looked so much like Paul...I thought maybe...maybe...I miss him so much." Maude then broke down sobbing, letting go a depth of sadness that had been bottled up for years. Curtis found himself taken aback by how wracked with despair this woman had allowed herself to be all of a sudden.  
Maude looked up at the Captian and said "Please...I don't care anymore...I just don't care...It doesn't matter what she knows...just make this all stop...Make it stop."  
Curtis then pulled her up close to him, letting her weight rest on his body, and said harshly in her ear "Pull yourself together woman. Boyd's gone now, the worst is gone, and if you think Caesar will let you suffer to long after doing him such a favor you're foolish."  
Maude stifled her tears and stepped back from the bronze skinned man next to her. She looked at Curtis with a wild stare, as if he had morphed into a monster upon telling her she was safe. Curtis then put his hand on her shoulder and steadied her "I figured if you've kept this many secrets, one more won't hurt. I'm going to check you into the medical ward. You'll be gone before you're in shape for Boyd to continue harassing you. I promise."  
Maude stared longer, the shock of who Curtis really was keeping her mute. She then extended her arm and wrapped it around his neck, and let Curtis help her out of the interrogation room into the medical area of the camp. As they walked past Boyd, she sneered, and said after the girl "You know we will catch the spy, and she'll find herself looking down the barrel of an executors rifle for it."


	4. 04 Escapism

Maude spent most of the day sleeping in the medical tent. She'd occasionally startle awake just to remember Curtis's words and attempt to comfort herself.  
Around noon she drifted off, and had a dream about running at the base of a collapsing sand dune. A voice in her head told her that she was going to suffocate, there was no way to out run the sand. When it finally collapsed onto her head, she managed to burrow her way out of the dirt only to to be face to face with a skeleton bleached and white on the ground. A familiar voice said "I miss you too." She reached out to push herself away from the bones, and began to fall back into the suffocating desert floor.  
The dream forced her awake and upright in bed. She then squinted over at the open door and as her eyes adjusted she focused on a familiar finger sitting in a chair over by the entrance.  
Boyd smirked at her slightly, stood up, and stomped out the cigarette she was smoking just to replace it with another one. She then put her elbow on her hand and walked over confidently. "Maude, Maude, Maude. I've been thinking about you. Do you know what I've been thinking?"  
The red headed woman then looked up from her bruised face and said "That you're going to leave me alone and let me sleep off this beating you arranged for me?"  
Boyd closed one eye and regarded the woman beneath, "Hmmm? No, I've been thinking about your future with the Legion. How you must have had a great shown great promise for polishing dog kennels. I know that might be hard to turn down, but I was wondering if the NCR couldn't convince you to confess your crimes as a spy and traitor...for...lets say, a life sentence instead of death."  
Maude found herself laughing at the Lieutenant. She then covered her mouth and felt her head throb from the exertion.  
The dark haired woman did not flinch at the laughter, she just stood their smoking, and watching Maude. The silence was immediately uncomfortable, and Maude found herself struggling to find words to make it end. Eventually she just rolled overly slowly and said "I guess you're having a hard time thinking of something new to say to make me uncomfortable...I'm innocent Boyd. Get used to it."  
Foot steps then began to move from the entrance to the cot where the two women were talking. Maude turned her head to see Lt. Boyd looking at a very annoyed Captain Curtis. The two soldiers locked eyes for several seconds until Curtis opened his mouth dryly and said, "Lieutenant, I thought you would be here...When you weren't in your office I just knew you couldn't pass up a chance to annoy this woman. Your disobedience is annoying but it makes notifying you of what I'm about to do easier.  
He paused and then looked at Maude somberly, "Maude Anderson, Colonel Hsu has considered your position for some time, and come to the decision that you will not be handed over to the Crimson Caravan, but rather sent back to the Shady Sands for trial. You will leave tomorrow with two armed soldiers that are returning to California for reassignment. You will be mirandized and placed under conditional arrest before you leave in the morning, is that understood?"  
Lt. Boyd smiled a little bit, obviously pleased that even though she had not extracted a confession, someone else probably would. She looked over at Maude, who was half sitting up and staring wildly at Curtis. He frowned at how she was masking the feeling of betrayal she now held deep inside. Boyd then addressed the Captain, saluted, and walked out, leaving Maude and Curtis in silence once again.  
"Do you understand what you are going to face Ms. Anderson? You will be tried, and the result of a conviction will be death," Curtis mused in a manner that seemed official but also hinted at something unspoken between them.  
Maude then nodded her head slowly and said "I understand...I just hope that the Republic will have mercy on me."  
Curtis then chuckled a little, then turned and walked out of the room, leaving Maude with a million second guesses and worries. If she were really sent to Shady Sands for trial she would face a jury of patriotic peers that would love a chance to stone a traitor. Fear crept up the red head's body, moving into her face and causing the blood to drain away. She grabbed the edge of the cot she was in and started to cry hysterically. The doctors came over, buzzed like flies, then eventually gave her some pills to calm her down and moved on, becoming watery blurs behind closing eyelashes.  
The next morning she was awoken by two guards. Groggy they helped position her to stand, had her change into a plane brown pant and shirt set, and mirandized her. She felt her emotions well up as they frisked her and moved her out into the blinding sun. She squinted, then focused on the soldiers around her. She noticed the patrolmen looked at her as if she was some kind of foreign body, some kind of creature forged from blood and ice, not meant to inhabit the desert. She hung her head and met two prison guards who attached hand cuffs to her, that lead about 4 feet from the Brahman they would be leading to Shady Sands.  
One of the men she would be traveling with lifted his hat and greeted her in a professional manner, and introduced himself as Steve. She just nodded and kept looking at the dirt. He then checked her bindings and introduced her to her other tanned brunette traveling companion.  
The trio traveled half a day down the road towards the Mojave Outpost to take advantage of the easy break between the mountains. Their was a dry wind that stirred up the dust on the road, which whistled, and made the only sound outside of footsteps.  
Suddenly Steve reached over and nudged the other man, who nodded and pulled the Brahman towards a fork that moved away from an outpost. They moved the group to a point they would not to be easily spotted, stopped the procession, and grabbed Maud's hands unchaining her wrists.  
"Why...why are you doing this?" Maude grabbed her wists and rubbed them, enjoying the feeling of blood accessing areas previously cut off by metal.  
Steve then smirked a little bit, his sun baked lips cracking as they slid into deep dimples. He pulled a laser pistol from his side and shot several rounds into the Brahman, killing it instantly. Maude gasped and moved backwards as the two men then moved on top of the creature, cutting it open, slicing bags, and spreading the pack contents in the dirt haphazardly.  
They then turned to the woman in their company, and were caught in her large scared eyes for a second. They then motioned her closer and gave her a pack full of water and food they had removed from the Brahman.  
"You'll be responsible for your own food and water consumption, it should be dusk by the time we get to the Cove," Steve remarked reassuringly.  
"Yes...The cursor will be waiting for us," the other man remarked.  
Maude took the pack and slung it over her shoulders slowly, feeling the pain from her bruises, and trying to make more sense of the men's actions. She then looked up at the two and nodded, words failing her.  
"The hand of Cesar is strong and encompassing. You should be grateful that he has chosen to save you from slavery when the Profligates finally fall at the hands of his Legion. He has bestowed you with a mark, that will assure your status as a free woman fit for marriage. It is your reward for saving one of us, and providing him with intelligence. We recognise you did this at great risk to yourself. Come now, we have much walking to do."  
Maude then looked down at the jet containers and other supplies scattered around the ground. Steve followed her eyes and said "Empty." Maude opened her mouth and let an "oh" escape her lips. The men adjusted their packs and began walking south. Steve informed her that his real name was Adriane. She listened to him and the other man swap stories of what they had been doing for the NCR, and wondered how many people were secretly working for Cesar.


	5. 05 Seeing you Again

I've been having some problems with this chapter not showing...and Chapter 2 appearing in its place.

If you're getting that error, I'm sorry, please know i'm working to fix it.

Best,

Leg

...

The boat ride was slow and awful. She looked over the side of the craft and caught her reflection in the ripples, the purple circles around her eyes causing her to feel very tired. She looked over at the man directing the boat and thought that she was at least glad to be away from that Centurion with the red feathered helmet. She pushed her eyes tight shut and listened to the sound of the oar in the water; hoping servitude was truly left across the watery divide.  
After some time the walls of Caesar's encampment began to rise up over the edge of the water. Fortification Hill was rings of rocks, rusted metal, and was intimidating to say the least. When the boat finally pulled up to the pier Maude to blinked tiredly. She took Adrian's hand and stepped onto the dock and stared up with fearful wonder.  
"It's something isn't it?" said the cursor, who was already preparing the boat for return. "I remember the first time I saw the fort, I knew that Caesar was truly powerful."  
Then man nodded at Adrian, and returned to tying up the boat. Adrian turned to Maude and gave her a command to follow him. Walking behind him she felt as if she was gliding through a museum detailing the great past of humanity. The men in their weird uniforms, staring at her with a combination of disgust and curiosity, seemed like dolls in an exhibit. She breathed in the warm moist air that carried with a slight sense of human filth, and turned to see a caravan of men packing a Brahman.  
She smiled a second and thought of the life she had known so long, thinking this place couldn't be as bad as reputed. Then a slave stepped from behind a trader, and adjusted a heavy pack on her shoulders. The red letter X decorated both sides of the woman's breast, and her knees buckled from the heavy load. The smile faded from her face, and she felt a defensive numbness creep across her.  
Along the hills path Maude was greeted with a parade telephone poles, reinforced at the base with wooden stands. A man was hanging from the last pole she came to. Maude paused and watched him for a second, wondering if he had died yet, but to her disappointment he drew a laborious and painful breath. She stepped a little closer, and studied the face of the dark haired man carefully, but kept directing to her eyes to the letters "NCR". She stepped back, her face pale, and breathed for the first time in several seconds. Her body shook a little and she thought, "At least it's not Silus...At least it wasn't all for nothing."  
Adrian then reached out and touched her elbow with the tips of his fingers, and she turned around startled. He looked oddly sympathetic "I know your first crucifixion is a bit intimidating, but follow me closely we have to meet someone."  
She felt like she was moving in slow motion, the eyes of everyone in the camp upon her, wondering who she was and what she was doing. It was unnerving, but at this point exhaustion and the soar tug of her tired body distracted her just enough to ignore. Maude felt as if she was watching herself swing around a bend and come to stop in front of a large tent on the top of the hill.

The sun beat down and burned into Maude, she felt her skin growing tight like it was shrinking away from the edges of her arm and face. She pulled a bottle of water from her back pack and drank half of it greedily. The men she had entered with shuffled tiredly in the dirt, then stood stiff, at attention when a tall bearded man walked out of the tent. He looked over the two of them and turned and seemed to regard Maude.  
He spoke with superior confidence, "Adrian, it's good to see you and Cattus returned to us as after so many years. I would send you to Vulpes for debriefing, but I'm afraid he is out on business. You will have to meet with his second in command."  
The two men nodded and bearded man walked past them to meet Maude eye to eye. "I suppose you're the one Silus told us about. Saving your life has been no small trouble; I hope you appreciate Ceasar's generosity."  
Maude stood in awe at this man's authority, she had spent plenty of time around NCR brass, but never had one approach her with such a strong sense of command. She then smiled politely, "Of course I'm grateful, well...I mean you guys did keep me from being executed as a traitor."  
The man smiled a little, "Yes, I suppose this all must be a lot for you to take in, after all you've been asked to move compliantly along as a plan bigger than you took effect. You're very fortunate that the information Silus brought back to us will prove extremely useful at the upcoming battle. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Lucius, head of Caesar's Praetorian Guard. He wanted me to great you on his behalf, and assure you that you are safe so long as you prove true to his will."  
"I see no reason to prove it false."  
"Good. I see the report that you were beaten by the same person that laid into Silus was not exaggerated. That a female could take such wounds and give up no information is remarkable. That said, I will have a slave escort you to a tent and allow you to rest."  
Lucius motioned behind him and a meek woman in a collar rushed forward and asked Maude to follow her. Muade craned her neck slowly from the woman to Lucius.  
"Excuse me, Lucas was it?"  
"Lucius," he raised his eyebrows and seemed a bit annoyed, "Yes?"  
"I wanted to ask you...What happened to Silus...Is he...well?"  
Lucius looked at her for a long quite moment, summing her up in a haughty way. He then motioned to the slave to take her off as he turned said "You'll find out soon enough."  
The slave took her back to the tent, prepared water, and helped her clean up. While she was being washed another woman slipped in and replaced the outfit she had been wearing with a rust colored gown of material similar to what the legionaries seemed to wear under their armor. It fit around her modestly, the waste just under her breasts, and the body of it only showing part of her shape occasionally as she walked.  
The slave that was with her then escorted her out of the tent, saying something about food, and it was the first time Maude realized how hungry she was. Her feet make little padding sounds on the dirt as the slave guided her to the side of the path anticipating a small Contubernia that was coming in from patrols. As the soldiers marched by, Maude found herself turning suddenly thinking she recognized the Decanus leading them. The man seemed to have turned his head a little bit, and she found herself watching him, despite the slave's protests.  
When they got to the end of the path, the Decanus dismissed his troupes and began to walk up the path, unwrapping the head dress he was wearing. Maude squinted in the orange glow of the sunset, and told the slave behind her to be quite not taking her eyes off of the man. When he finally unwrapped the last of his face cover, he shook out his dark hair, and used his fingers to push it back.  
Maude whispered "Silus," but found her feet locked beneath her.  
He smiled at Maude, noting how nice she looked dressed like a proper woman and chuckling a little at the fists she was making to hold herself back. He then reached out for her and put his hand behind her neck and pressed her to his chest. Silus said to her in a strangely kind tone "I owe you a great debt.."  
He winced when she put a hand on his shoulder. She pulled back and noticed a long corded welt on his neck, which moved under his clothes in a line. She reached out to touch it with a sympathetic look, but he grabbed her hand and said "Woman, what makes you think that would be appropriate."  
She looked up at him, and thought 'but he isn't like Paul at all, is he?' and stepped back, confused. He looked at her chidingly and spoke with demeaning tone "It is never appropriate for a woman to touch a man in the street, Even if she is promised to him."  
Maude then looked at him curiously, knowing her expression made her seem very fragile. "I..promised...what?"  
Silus didn't seem to acknowledge her, and continued lecturing her "The slave that was assigned to you was supposed to explain to you the conditions of you staying in Legion lands. Ceasar has seen fit to make me accountable for your actions, to the point that he feels a union between you and I would best assure your fealty. Because I have experience breaking women and making them accept their roles as slaves, Lord Ceasar thinks making you behave properly as a wife will be no problem for me."  
The slave behind her step forward and cowered "I'm sorry Master Silus, I had not yet told her what her place was to be here. I was going to tell her at dinner, and we have not made it to the mess tent yet."  
Silus sneered at slave, and grabbed her by the front of her shirt, "It would be wiser if you had just brought her dinner in the tent she was staying in and not left her out here to tempt the gaze of passing men. She's more mine than you will ever be, and you need to remember that." He then tossed the woman on the ground and looked over at Maude who was aghast at his behavior. The slave simply continued to cower, beg for mercy, and tell Silus she would fix this whole thing.  
He barked at the slave to be silent, and she moved quickly behind Maude as if she was taking cover. Maude turned and looked at the woman with the red X's on her shirt cowering in the dirt, and returned her gaze to Silus who seemed to have a mischievous gleam in his eye.  
"I do not desire this Silus, if you would ever treat me like you do this woman, please return me to the NCR and let them destroy me."  
He then stepped forward and ran his fingers behind her ear and his thumb along her jaw line. "Tell me, do you regret your decision now? If you could do it again would you leave me to rot, and spare yourself the beatings and insults you've received? Would you run from me and make me regret keeping my word and asking Caesar to spare you?"  
Maude gazed up at him, caught in his yellow eyes, she thought to herself that he looked like a bull snake, and shivered. He then slid his fingers down her neck and pressed his thumb every so lightly into her throat, "Answer me, before you begin to displease me."  
She then stuttered "I'm...I'm sorry..I'm just so overwhelmed. No, I have no regrets, just please...Understand, I thought I was going to be tried as a traitor, and now I'm here...and..."  
She feel silent and looked down at the ground.  
Silus used the fingers on her neck to tilt her head back. Hovering close to her face he said softly "Rest, tomorrow will be an eventful day. Know that so long as your words are true, and you prove loyal to Legion, you have nothing to fear."  
Silus then released her. He straightened his uniform and with a smirk walked off triumphantly towards the mess hall.  
The slave touched Maude's hand and said "Mistress," causing Maude to startle out of her train of though and look down at her.  
"I'm sorry...I forgot you were there...And I'm sorry he treats you like that."  
The slave then looked at her curiously and then smiled out of a combination of pity and sympathy. "Masters Silus is a hard man. He knows what he wants, and isn't afraid to take it. He's not as violent as some of the men here, but he is still a Legionary."  
Maude nodded and looked at the final speck of him disappear into a tent as the sun shifted to red and finally hid itself behind a hill.  
"What was your name girl, and do you belong to Silus?"  
"It is Savanna, Mistress...and yes, I am Master Silus's property."  
Maude smoothed Savanna's hair and said to her in a comforting manner "I guess that means you've had..." The slave then pulled away from her and looked a little guilty.  
"Savanna, I won't hold the past against you, I'm sure you didn't choose to be in this place."  
The slave girl nodded, and began to lead Maude back to the tent as the crickets chirped around them. At the entrance Maude turned and looked out over the encampment into the large expanse of starry sky. "I suppose the saddest part is, no one that is here probably had any choice. Yet here they remain."


	6. 06 Legionary Marriage

During the night Savanna explained the proper role of a free woman in Legion society, and what was going to happen to Maude. It seemed later today she would be expected to marry Silus, and after a few nights together she would be moved to a base farther from the dam. There were a lot of rules about how you conducted yourself around men, in private, in public, ec. It seemed very oppressive, and Maude wondered if she was up to it.  
Savanna also explained the extent of Silus's punishment for refusing to kill himself. He had been busted back to Decanus, and was brutally lashed in view of the other men. It was announced to all that he was not being crucified only because of the information he had managed to return with had proven invaluable. Of course no one but high ranking officers knew what that information was.  
The next afternoon Savanna brought in some small desert flowers, and both women wove them together into a wreath for Maud's head. She brushed her hair and placed them atop her auburn locks, and felt prettier than she was before.  
After dusk settled a Legionary came and escorted Maude from the tent. She first saw, Aurelius who had come in from Cottonwood Cove to preside, and stood next to a torch in his silly feathered hat. Maude smiled softly as she saw Silus standing their in polished armor waiting for her.  
Silus held out his hand, and Maude put hers in his. A few words were said in Latin, and Aurelius of Phoenix announced them wed. They kissed more for show than passion, and Silus lead her over to a table near the mess hall that was lit with torches and had a small feast for the couple to enjoy. The men who served under Silus, and several officers stood around and made jovial conversation with the couple..  
Silus left Maude to go great an old friend. She watched him walk over and grab the man by the shoulders, smiling like they hadn't seen each other in ages. Maude stepped back near a brazier with a warm fire going, deciding it better to not actively engage any of the men with out her new husband present. The flames made her feel warm in contrast to the cool air of the desert night, and she realized, for the first time in a long time, she was happy.  
While she was stargazing Maude heard footsteps behind her and turned. The light from the brazier fell upon the face of a balding middle aged man, Lucius, and two others she didn't know. She smiled in a courteous way, and was greeted by the middle aged man.  
"I should thank you my dear; I think your marrying old Silus has lifted the spirits of the troops. I believe you give them hope that there will be other beautiful women for them in the Mohave waiting to be conquered."  
Maude laughed a little at the odd compliment, and then said in a kidding way "I don't know that I'd say I was conquered...Perhaps the two of us gambled successfully and are enjoying the fruits of our winnings."  
The middle age man chuckled sincerely "If what I hear is true, then perhaps that is an accurate assessment of the situation. It amazes me the NCR Profligates are so foolish as to leave documents guarded poorly enough that a maid could make off with them. If their folly continues I see more good fortune for our future."  
Maude grinned, thinking to herself that it was nice to find such a friendly person in the Legion, she'd started to wonder if any of them had a sense of humor.  
A firm hand landed on Maude's shoulder and Silus stepped next to her then bowed "Hail Great Caesar! I am honored you would take the time to come to my wedding feast. Please excuse my wife's boldness in addressing you, she does not know our ways yet."  
Maude then felt the blood rush out of her face and her lips go numb with fear. Had she said something offensive? Was she endangering herself or Silus by addressing Caesar so casually?  
Caesar patted Silus back in a friendly way, causing Silus to grimace in pain, and then laughed boldly. "Of course I knew that, you scaly bastard. I'll have you know that your bride said nothing that you need to worry about And look how charming she looks over by the fire, scared to death of me because of you. Be good to her Silus, or I might remember my love of red headed women and steal her away from you."  
Maude and Silus laughed with Caesar, but with nervous looks shot between the couple.  
After several minutes of friendly banter between Caesar and the former Centurion, the dictator turned and looked at Maude, "Now, now, now all of this business must be boring Silus's new bride. Plus I have something else I want to ask her. Maude, tell me, when you walked out of Hsu's office with those blueprints, did you have any idea what you had in your hands?"  
Maude smiled nervously at Silus who seemed to be encouraging her to answer.  
"Well...I had no idea they were blue prints...It was a folder someone had found in a bunch of boxes brought over from the dam for the scientists to go through. Colonel Hsu said what was in them was one of a kind, and needed studying for the security of the dam. He had forbidden any copies to be made least they fell into the wrong hands...Most of the soldiers at McCarrin always ignored the Crimson Caravan workers, sense we were all under hefty contracts to keep stuff secure...So during the night I helped my friend Kara with the laundry rounds, and used her master key to sneak into Hsu's and pick up the plans. I wrapped them in fatigues, stuck under my shirt, and snuck to Silus the next day."  
Caesar grinned and slapped Silus on the back again causing Silus to hold back a whimper, and then announced "Lady Fortuna smiled on you Silus, because if she had not given you those documents to bring back to me, you'd be on top of a cross right now."  
The crowd laughed and Silus excused himself and Maude so that they could eat. They sat in the center of a table and dined politely as the camp shared stories, and even sang a little. As she cut her meat Maude thought she could adjust to this society, they might not have drinks on occasions like this, but even the Legion could have a good time.  
After they had finished eating a slave brought Silus and Maude both small cups of honey, and took a 3rd glass over to Caesar, who took it and began to speak.  
"To Silus and his wife Maude. May their mouths always remain sweet like this honey for each other. May they have many children for my Legoin. May the happiness they share with all of us tonight be a good omen of our victory at Hoover Dam. For we will move forward from this day, as they will with their new lives, and crush the Profligate scum that stands between us and our Rome. Soon New Vegas will know the civilizing blade of The God Mars, and I, his son, will forge the way so that Silus and his sons will not know the filth of the NCR! To Silus and Maude!"  
The crowd repeated "To Silus and Muade."  
The newlyweds followed Caesar's lead and swallowed the honey.  
Silus then reached over and pulled Maude to her feet and kisses her passionately. He seemed to have an almost drunken confidence brought on by the merriment of his comrades. Silus then pulled her by the hand towards his tent to the cheers and whistles of the men around them. Maude felt bright and happy as he lead her back to the tent.


	7. 07 Union

Silus quickly parted the tent and pulled Maude into his arms. She laughed and smiled, looking into his yellow reptilian eyes. He then leaned in and kissed her hard, using the back of his hand to keep her from pulling away. She yielded to his kiss and returned it with several small feverish kisses down the side of his face and neck.  
"It's been a long time," she murmured.  
Silus then pressed her face between his thumb and fingers and said "Yes, you mentioned you were married before. After tonight you'll think those death claws did you a favor."  
Maude laughed at his cockiness, it seemed charming at this moment, and she didn't want to ruin the mood by getting mad. "Big words to live up to."  
Silus then growled at her in his throat and said "Woman, I have wondered sense I saw in that tacky wife beater and baggy pants what you would look like standing before me naked. If you're smart, if you want to avoid a slave collar, I'd suggest taking that dress off fast."  
Maude blushed a little bit and stepped back from him. She reached down to unbuckle the small belt holding her dress together just below the bust. She then pulled the skirt slowly up, revealing a pair of pale but well shaped legs, and then pulled the rest of her dress over her head as gracefully as possible. The flowers in her hair fell at her feet, lining the way for her lover to approach.  
Silus moved forward with the pent up tension of a coiled snake, and touched her on the hip, caressing, and marveling at how lovely her curves were. She obviously knew a day's work, but not the hard labor that leaves so many slaves slightly boyish. He then moved his hand up her side and brushed his fingers along two pale pink nipples. He then slid his left hand behind her head, and drew her close like he was going to kiss her.  
"Maude, you are a precious thing. Now tend to your husband's armor carefully. Remove it and set it on the chair."  
There was something confident and commanding in his tone that made Maude feel a slow burning fire inside of her. She let her fingers trail across the collar of his armor as she walked around behind him, and began to fidget with the clasps. She removed each piece, working her way down to the leather cingulum that was wrapped around his waist. He stood there in his rust colored tunic as she bit her lip teasingly and bent over to untie his sandals. Silus no longer felt the need to hold back, and caressed her backside as she untied them.  
Maude stood and blushed at the sight of his muscular and eager body, the rust dyed cloth doing little to mask his excitement. He pulled her close to him by the hips and firmly bit her neck. She whimpered and let her fingers run along the tunic's hem and tugged at it gently. He plied the tunic from his skin. His body was firm and muscular, befitting of a Hellenistic sculpture.  
Silus then pressed her down to the rug on the ground, kissing her firmly. She yielded and slid back, allowing him to pull himself between her legs, and pressing his urgency against her opening. He then shifted up and pushed himself deep inside of her, causing a moan of excitement as she felt wrapped her legs tight around him.  
He growled again into her ear and began to thrust firmly inside of her, and she kissed him letting her urgency show. He met her kiss with a more passionate one and began to thrust harder. He released her lips and used his arms to push down on her shoulders, pinning her beneath him. She realized his need to feel in control of her but lost the train of thought as her body began to tremble with her own orgasms. Her muscle contractions and little whimpers made him wild and he quickly came to his own completion.  
Maude reached over and removed a few stray clumps of hair from his face, and he nipped at the side of one of her perk breasts. Silus groaned into her chest, moved his arms underneath her, and shook her from side to side.  
"Tell Caesar I quit, that I'm going to just spend the rest of my life here between your breasts."  
Maude laughed, "I think you'd end up with more of those lashes on your back if you informed the Emperor of the Legion that you didn't care to work so that you could remain planted between your wife's breasts."  
Silus responded with his mouth still muffled by her skin "Mmmmm, if he saw them he'd understand."  
"Maybe he would. We could go outside and ask him if he'd like to take a peak."  
Silus then smacked her hip with his hand and tiredly stated, "You will do no such thing, bad woman."  
She didn't respond and kept playing with his hair. After a few minutes he lazily looked up at her. "I guess I'll keep you…So…Explain to me why you came to work in that abysmal NCR hell hole. I would like to understand you better."  
Maude adjusted herself underneath him a little and said a bit sadly "I thought I already told you…Deathclaws..Dead husband…Never ending contract."  
"Mmmmm…I suppose I crave more detail..The Profligates seem quite insistent that they don't have slaves, and yet you seem to stand out as an example of that being false."  
Maude sighed and ran her hand through her own hair. She had a feeling he wouldn't drop this until she gave him more of an answer.  
"I feel in love with a boy who worked for the Crimson Caravan Company when I was 17. At the time I was just the daughter of a poor farmer working an NCR farm. Well in the long run I found out he liked me too, and we both got married really young. We lived together for 3 years, and I started picking up Crimson Caravan Contracts.  
You see Crimson Caravan doesn't really pay all that well, you get on a contract with them and you only have a few caps left at the end because they take out fines for your basic upkeep, food, and care. Sometimes if they fine you excessively or if you negotiated a poor contract you end up owing them at the end.  
Paul…My first husband, scraped up enough caps after his father died to be able to apply them as a deposit on a contract for a risky caravan run. He needed my help to pay for it, so he structured it so that I was a non-participating clause to the contract, and owed in with our having to do work. If he'd have gotten his goods successfully to market we would've been rich. If the goods never made it to market, due to theft or negligence...Well basically the funds would have bought us both out of 25 year contracts...If one of us died the other had to pick up the remaining years on the other's contract. Crimson Caravan doesn't usually do these contracts, cause few people have the caps...But when they do it can be really profitable for everyone, so they tend to not refuse them.  
Well..He got half way to market when a group of deathclaws descended on him and the guard. So I ended up 20 years old with a 50 year contract on me. You know, most people don't live to 70 in the wasteland, so everyone knew I was going to be stuck there for life. One of the supervisors liked me, and took pity, and instead of putting me on hard labor, he enlisted me as a maid for the NCR camp nearby.  
So I spent 6 months cleaning up after lazy soldiers at McCarran…Until this handsome dark haired Legionary showed up and convinced me to help him out."  
Silus nodded, and squeezed her body firmly. She wondered if he was trying to be reassuring, and didn't know how to verbalize comfort. They remained in silence, each with private thoughts, until Silus began to kiss her, and so it went until morning.


	8. 08 Endings

Silus and Maude only had a few days together before prep for The Battle of Hoover Dam had escalated to the point that nonessential personnel were being sent to the nearest remote base.  
The two lovers parted ways on a dusty path heading towards the east. The wind had kicked up and stirred Maude's clothes and hair. Silus kissed her and asked her to promise to wait for him. She told him she'd never pass the Colorado River again without him.  
Five days after she arrived soldiers began to fall into the base. The stories that began to spread around were not of a great victory, but rather a crushing defeat at the hands of the NCR. It seemed a Currier out of Goodsprings had assisted the New California Republic in turning on the generators the Legion had used to crawl into the dam, killing a large chunk of the Legion's forces. It also seemed the Currier had forged alliances with important people from the Mojave to crush what was left of the Legion.  
A week after she had arrived, news came that Silus had been inside the turbines when they had been turned on. Maude sat up that night thinking about him, and how violently he had died. She thought of a story she heard as a girl about people who die violent death's not knowing they were deceased, and always inhabiting the place where they died.  
In the morning the base began to pack up and shift southward, most people were following what was left of the Legat's troops to Flagstaff. Caesar had died of a brain tumor just days before the invasion, and Lanius had been defeated in battle against the Currier. It was apparent the legion was collapsing from within.  
During the night Maude dressed herself, and slipped out of the tent past Savanna and began to walk west to the Colorado River. Dawn crept up, ending a night of walking through the moonless desert, and Maude reached the cliffs that lined the river near the Dam.  
She looked across and saw NCR troops celebrating on the other side. The wind blew her dress and swept it up exposing her ankles, and she squinted her eyes to see the NCR troops waving their arms and trying to get her attention. She couldn't hear what they were shouting, but they seemed to be encouraging her to come across to freedom. Perhaps they thought she was a slave who'd run away?  
Maude watched the people on the other side for a second, standing against the wind. She noticed their cheers getting louder, hope and victory stirring their voices. In that second she thought of Paul, and remembered getting the news that he had been ripped to part by desert monsters. She thought of Silus, and the few days of happiness she had stolen after so much time damned to servitude. She left the Legion base realizing future was uncertain at best on this side of the Colorado River, and ruined on the other.  
She smiled at the Troopers in their brown uniforms, then lifted her foot up gracefully, and stepped forward into the chasm that ends in water rushing from the turbines of the dam. Her body hit the rocks a few times on the way down, breaking her before she was finally submerged under the current. The Troopers stopped cheering, and fell silent at the needless presence of death.


End file.
